JoyceGA
09-06-2006, 03:54 PM
There are several articles in today's papers about a diet rich in protein causing participants to lose weight.
Protein Diet Best Quells Hunger, May Fight Obesity, Study Shows
By Marthe Fourcade
Sept. 5 (Bloomberg) -- A diet rich in protein may help people shed weight because it triggers the production of a hormone that quells hunger, researchers found, opening a new front in the battle against obesity.
The study suggests eating more soy, fish or lean meat may help people shed weight, the researchers said. They are seeking funding for a broader study that would examine the effect of a diet heavier in protein on patients' health and on their weight over several years, said Rachel Batterham, the lead researcher.
``We now need to do a big study in obese patients and see whether these short-term effects translate into longer-term benefits,'' said Batterham of University College London. ``People are just beginning to realize how much obesity is going to cost us.''
The U.K. government banned televised advertising of candy bars and soda pop before 9 p.m. two months ago, one of several recent measures to try to tackle rising obesity in children. The number of obese people, who often suffer from side effects such as high cholesterol and diabetes, has increased between 10 percent and 40 percent in most European countries over the past decade, according to the European Commission.
In the U.S., almost 67 percent of U.S. adults are overweight, up from about 45 percent in the early 1960s, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control. The cost of treating them had swelled to $78.5 billion by 2003.
Mice and Men
The new study, published in the research journal Cell Metabolism, shows a diet higher in protein boosts production in the gut of a hormone called PYY, which sends signals to the brain to indicate fullness.
The study had three stages. In the first one, researchers fed normal-weight and obese men according to three diets and found that the high-protein one caused the greatest release of PYY and the greatest reduction in hunger.
``These findings suggested that PYY could mediate the satiating effects of protein,'' the researchers wrote. ``We therefore developed a rodent experimental model in which to investigate this possibility.''
The second stage confirmed the results, showing that mice's production of the PYY hormone increased and that rodents ate less and had reduced levels of body fat after being fed a high-protein diet for 16 weeks.
Finally, the researchers bred mice that were unable to produce PYY to confirm the hormone's role. They found that those animals ate more and were 40 percent fatter than others after just 10 weeks. When they received PYY injections, the mice shed weight and fat.
Our hunter-gatherer ancestors relied on protein for as much as 35 percent of their energy, whereas the average Western diet now contains about 16 percent of protein, the researchers said. An increase to 20 percent may be enough to feel fuller and shed weight, according to Batterham.
``It has to be something that's realistic, a slight change in diet that people can sustain,'' she said. ``And it has to be low-fat protein'' such as soy, whey, lean meat or fish, she said.
:Banane24: :Banane24:
Protein Diet Best Quells Hunger, May Fight Obesity, Study Shows
By Marthe Fourcade
Sept. 5 (Bloomberg) -- A diet rich in protein may help people shed weight because it triggers the production of a hormone that quells hunger, researchers found, opening a new front in the battle against obesity.
The study suggests eating more soy, fish or lean meat may help people shed weight, the researchers said. They are seeking funding for a broader study that would examine the effect of a diet heavier in protein on patients' health and on their weight over several years, said Rachel Batterham, the lead researcher.
``We now need to do a big study in obese patients and see whether these short-term effects translate into longer-term benefits,'' said Batterham of University College London. ``People are just beginning to realize how much obesity is going to cost us.''
The U.K. government banned televised advertising of candy bars and soda pop before 9 p.m. two months ago, one of several recent measures to try to tackle rising obesity in children. The number of obese people, who often suffer from side effects such as high cholesterol and diabetes, has increased between 10 percent and 40 percent in most European countries over the past decade, according to the European Commission.
In the U.S., almost 67 percent of U.S. adults are overweight, up from about 45 percent in the early 1960s, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control. The cost of treating them had swelled to $78.5 billion by 2003.
Mice and Men
The new study, published in the research journal Cell Metabolism, shows a diet higher in protein boosts production in the gut of a hormone called PYY, which sends signals to the brain to indicate fullness.
The study had three stages. In the first one, researchers fed normal-weight and obese men according to three diets and found that the high-protein one caused the greatest release of PYY and the greatest reduction in hunger.
``These findings suggested that PYY could mediate the satiating effects of protein,'' the researchers wrote. ``We therefore developed a rodent experimental model in which to investigate this possibility.''
The second stage confirmed the results, showing that mice's production of the PYY hormone increased and that rodents ate less and had reduced levels of body fat after being fed a high-protein diet for 16 weeks.
Finally, the researchers bred mice that were unable to produce PYY to confirm the hormone's role. They found that those animals ate more and were 40 percent fatter than others after just 10 weeks. When they received PYY injections, the mice shed weight and fat.
Our hunter-gatherer ancestors relied on protein for as much as 35 percent of their energy, whereas the average Western diet now contains about 16 percent of protein, the researchers said. An increase to 20 percent may be enough to feel fuller and shed weight, according to Batterham.
``It has to be something that's realistic, a slight change in diet that people can sustain,'' she said. ``And it has to be low-fat protein'' such as soy, whey, lean meat or fish, she said.
:Banane24: :Banane24: